Atlanta High School Cafeteria Has Separate Vegetarian Lunch Line

Atlanta is one of my least-favorite big cities to visit because of the paucity of vegetarian options. Even food that ought to be vegetarian is usually spiked with meat. Not infrequently, I’ll hear from restaurant servers comments like “Yes, [X] is vegetarian–there’s just a little [pig product] in it for flavoring.” (I’m always fascinated by how many Southerners think of pig as a vegetable.)

So it was very surprising to read that Grady High School in Atlanta is one of the few high schools in the country to offer a vegetarian lunch line in its cafeteria. Among the offerings: veggie eggrolls, pasta salad, vegetarian pizza and–get this–sloppy joes made with tofu!

Further, the article notes how many meat-eaters “jump the line” to the vegetarian options. I’m not really surprised by this; instead, I am constantly surprised by how many restaurants don’t offer a “real” vegetarian option or do so only as a clear after-thought. I think many meat-eaters will voluntarily choose vegetarian options when restaurants take those options seriously.